Why Do We Care If Actors Look Like Their Real-Life Subjects?

Inspired by the rumored casting news about the Beatles biopics, I decided to write an essay about our obsession with whether or not an actor resembles the real person they're playing. My argument: It matters less than we realize.

AFI Fest 2023: 'Freud's Last Session' Review

Anthony Hopkins is Sigmund Freud in Freud's Last Session, a drama that imagines what might have happened if he had met C.S. Lewis (Matthew Goode) and debated the existence of God. (Freud was an atheist. Lewis was a Christian.) My review is here.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: 'Wakanda Forever,' 'Armageddon Time' and 'Spirited'

I liked two out of the three movies we reviewed this past week. Can you guess which one I didn't care for? You can hear the whole thing down below.

Cannes 2022: 'Armageddon Time' Review

James Gray returns to Cannes for the first time since The Immigrant. Here's my review of Armageddon Time.

Let's Rank Jodie Foster's Movies

In honor of The Mauritanian, her first film in several years, we take a look back at Jodie Foster's acting career. What's her best performance? Our pick is over at Vulture.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: The Best Films of 2020

The year is almost over. Let's take a look back at 2020's finest films. Will and I each present our Top 10 lists on the podcast. Enjoy!

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: So Many Movies, So Little Time

We went through eight new movies on this week's episode:

Wonder Woman 1984
Soul
The Father
News of the World
Promising Young Woman
One Night in Miami
Education
The Midnight Sky

We gave ourselves about seven minutes for each film. Let the lightning-round begin!

Sundance 2020: 'Dick Johnson Is Dead,' 'The Father' and Saying Goodbye to Your Parents

What do these two movies have in common? They're both about dads with dementia. This inspired some thoughts about losing my mom and dad. I wrote about it for MEL.

Sundance 2020: 'The Father' Review

So, I really loved The Father. My review is up at Screen International.

Misleading Men: Anthony Hopkins

This Friday sees the release of Collide, which isn't screening in advance. That is a sure sign that the movie is bad. What's notable about it: Anthony Hopkins is one of the stars. It's become somewhat common for Hopkins to show up in forgettable fare. This is a man who won an Oscar for The Silence of the Lambs. But what's happened since then? For MEL, I dig into his very strange career. Hope you enjoy.

'Hitchcock' Review

I have a soft spot in my heart for the opening night of AFI Fest. Many years ago, I attended my first ever opening night when I attended the U.S. premiere of Life Is Beautiful. It was in the Grauman's Chinese, and Roberto Benigni spoke beforehand, doing all the shtick that, because no one was that familiar with it, was actually immensely charming. (That feeling would change as it was repeated ad nauseum during that Oscar season.) Regardless, the oh-wow excitement of a big premiere has always stayed with me, even if now I tend to look at them as a lot of talk talk talk until we can finally get to the movie.

This year's AFI Fest opening night film was Hitchcock, and I confess that I was somewhat optimistic going on. Anthony Hopkins seemed to have Hitchcock down cold, and I'm a sucker for behind-the-scenes stories of how classic movies are made -- in this case, Psycho. Alas, the film is defiantly mediocre. My review is up at Screen International.